Various types of support racks such as those for carrying skis or other snow sport related equipment, that mount on an automobile, are commercially available. Such racks are typically adapted to be mounted on the roof, trunk, or rear bumper of the automobile. However, many automobiles do not have trunks making trunk-mounted racks impractical. Furthermore, many roof racks require attachment to drip moldings or gutters above the side windows of the automobile. However, many present automobile designs do not have such gutters in order to improve the aerodynamic look and performance of the automobile. These roof-mounted racks are thus also not usable on these automobiles.
Some prior art carriers have overcome these shortcomings by providing racks which are mountable on either the side or rear window of the automobile for carrying a variety of articles. Examples of such window-mounted racks can be seen in the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,231,501 to Goode; 2,157,001 to Morley; 2,302,300 to Davies; 2,549,391 to Secoral; 3,286,892 to Marshall; and 3,333,750 to Porter. Various ones of such carriers, however, are not without significant drawbacks. For example, some such racks can seriously impair visibility. Not only are the racks themselves in the line of sight, but the objects which are being carried are also. Since many states and municipalities have regulations prohibiting obstruction of the line of sight of an automobile, use of some carriers may be in violation of such regulations.
Some of such carriers also present aerodynamic problems as the structure of the carriers extends generally perpendicularly away from the surface of the vehicle. This can create undue drag. Moreover, by virtue of this perpendicular projection away from the side of the automobile, some article carriers may project beyond the largest profile of the automobile. Some municipalities, or even foreign countries, have laws prohibiting an automobile attachment from projecting beyond an automobile's largest profile, as viewed end-on. Any of the prior art carriers projecting away from this profile would be unusable in these circumstances.
Certain ones of such carriers may also be inconvenient to use since the metal hangers which support the carriers on the glass are too bulky to allow the window to roll up fully and seat into the rubber door seal. Since such carriers are generally used in cold-weather climates, such an unsealed window could prove to be a significant inconvenience.